equity partner with a builder

[Marina Wong]

I came across a builder who will be building in a high demand town near Boston. He needs an equity partner and will pay 50% return. I do not personally know the builder (I know him through a friend who knows him through his CPA). If I can check out that he is an experienced builder, what other info do I need to check? He has given me a couple of references. I talked to one who is his real estate agent and partner. He also gave me a list of houses he has built in the past 10 years. The equity that he raised will be for down payment of the purchase of the existing property (30% of the total cost) and the builder will get a construction loan for the remainder of the cost. He expects to finish the project in spring of 2015. The building is by right so no special permit needed. I can also check the ones on his project list and they all seem to be very high end and sold relatively quickly. He gave me a break down of the costs. I have never done this before so not sure if the return is typical (from his contract, it does not seem that the equity partner has any collateral). I can also check if the projected sale price of the final condos is reasonable or not.

Any advice is appreciated. Thank you.